Happy New Year, supporters of Peace On Earth Ministries. We thank you for your support in 2025, and we welcome you to 2026 and to the 34th year of The Knowlesletter. Our individual roles here at POEM have changed, but our goals remain the same: proclaiming, peacemaking, partnering, and publishing – all with a passion for Christian unity and a compassion for suffering humanity. No doubt, many of you have set your own goals for this year; typically, we call them resolutions. I often think that our New Year’s resolutions serve as a second Christmas list, a wish list of sorts for the things we need most, but which cannot be purchased. In December, we receive; in January, we resolve. In December, we unwrap; in January, we must act. Our personal goals require belief, desire, willingness, discipline, and effort. Effort is essential, and our motto here at POEM in 2026 is “Make every effort.”
Our theme for the latest issue of One Body magazine is “Christian Unity: More than a Dream,” and in my editorial, I point to the need for action in pursuit of that dream. We don’t get to simply unwrap the dream of Christian oneness. We must go beyond mere belief and desire; we must actively participate in whatever opportunities – small or large, near or far – that God presents to us. Theologian Karl Barth once observed, “Perhaps we prefer to place ourselves next to the truth instead of in the truth.” Barth was elaborating on our general tendency toward stubborn individualism, not unity, but his point is appropriate here. I have recognized my own inclination to stand “next to the truth” (selfishly holding proper opinions, desires, and beliefs) instead of standing “in the truth” (lovingly sharing and gently participating in those truths). How about you? I trust we can agree that standing like this is bad posture; it is not effective for evangelism, and it is not useful for unity. If we are satisfied to merely stand “next to” Christ’s plea in John 17 for His believers to be one and for the world to believe because of it, then our belief in His prayer is irrelevant, and our desire remains a dream.
Our motto, “Make every effort,” appears numerous times in the epistles of the New Testament, and its meaning and application are essential not only for our individual lives of Christian faith but also for our shared dream of Christian unity. Some familiar examples: “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and mutual edification.” (Romans 14:12) “Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness, no one will see the Lord.” (Hebrews 12:14) “For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.” (2 Peter 1:5-7) “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:3) “. . . make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.” (2 Peter 3:14)
Notice four things about this powerful clause. First, there is an imperative: make. Don’t just think about it, don’t just dream about it, don’t just talk about it – do it. Second, there is the object of the imperative: effort. It indicates action. Third, there is the implied subject – the one impelled to act: You. Every Christian who reads these verses is being given instruction. Fourth, there is a modifier: every. In whatever way possible, as many times as necessary, despite difficulty – make the effort. The Greek verb spoudázō connotes exertion, diligence, even haste or urgency. Echoes of “make every effort” can be heard when Paul writes of “striving side by side” (Phil. 1:27), “straining forward” and “pressing on” (Phil. 3:13-14), and being “steadfast” while giving “fully to the work of the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58). Our Lord, too, employs this urgent tone when He says, “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door” (Luke 13:24).
What is true for your life of faith is also true for your belief in the importance of Christian unity: It is clear that the command to make every effort leaves no room for half-heartedness, let alone idleness or inaction. What can be unclear, sometimes, is where to apply that effort. The best first step is diligent, faithful prayer. You can imagine how Paul would encourage you to pray, can’t you? I don’t think that he would ask us to pray for unity once or twice a year. Certainly, he wouldn’t ask us to pray that everyone else would think as we do. Let us all resolve and commit to praying regularly for opportunities to, as Jerry Harris wrote recently in the Christian Standard, “reach out as far as truth will allow” and to demonstrate that unity of spirit that is called for in Christ’s one body – His church.
